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Its Christ, ^ Its Curse. 



4l f (pf IfT, 
By EDWARD D. BDYLSTON. 



With the eye of a spirit I look on that shore 
Where pilgrim and prophet have lingered before ; 
With the glide of a spirit I traverse the sod 
Made bright by the steps of the angels of God, 

WHITTIER. 




(privately published.) 

AMHERST, N. H., 
E. D. BDYLSTON, PR. — CABINET PRESS, 

1886. 



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Td thE friEnds nf my Idve who 

may bs its rEcipiEntS; 

this littlE work is affEctionatEly 

dEdicatEd; 

■with thE EarnEst prayEr thatj 

While sailing o'er life's Galilee, 

Christ in the ship with each may be ; 

Or, heard by each, when waves run high. 
His sweet "Fear nt-t !" and "It is I !" 

THE AUTHOR. 



No fable old, no mythic lore, 

Nor dream of bards and seers, 
No dead fact stranded on the shore 

Of the oblivious years ; 
But warm, sweet, tender, even yet 

A present help is He ; 
And faith has yet its Olivet, 

And love its Galilee.— whittier. 



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Intro duct Dry, 

Because only of an untravelled timidity, the writer cannot 
say, witli another, "I have fulfilled a long-cherished desire 
to see with my own eyes, and to tread with my own feet, 
the most sacred and classical land in the world," and there- 
fore must draw upon him and others in his need. 

Dr. Schafif says truly — '"Palestine is a library of revela- 
lation. It is still the old Canaan, beautiful even in decay. 
But in no country is the contrast between the glorious past 
and the miserable present so startling and sad. The whole 
land is a venerable ruin." 

'•What the traveller will see, as he emerges from the Val- 
ley of Doves, (Wady Hammam, a beautiful mountain gorge 
leading to Majdil,) and catches his first glimpse of Gennes- 
areth, will be a small inland sea, harp-shaped. 13 miles long 
and 6 broad. On the eastern side is a narrow green strip 
or plain, excepting one spot where the hills run close to the 
lake, (where probably the herd of swine perfshed.) Be- 
yond this, desolate hills scored with deep ravines, rise 900 
feet above the lake, without tree, village, or vestige of cul- 
tivation — the frequent scene of our Lord's retirement. — 
The lake —with its glittering crystal, and flowering olean- 
ders, through whose green leaves shfne the bright blue wing 
of the roller bird— lies at the bottom of a geaat dent or ba- 
sin in the earth's surface, more than 500 feet bolow the 




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level of the Mediterranean ; hence the plain of Gennese- 
reth is called "the little hcllow." The shores are now de- 
serted Excepting Tiberias, in the last stages of decrepi- 
tude, and the frightful village of Mejdel, where the chil- 
dren play naked in the street, there is not a single inhabit' 
ed spot on its once crowded shores.'' — Farrar. 

"If every vestige of human habitation should disappear 
from beside it, and the jackal and hyena should howl about 
the shattered fragments of synagogues where once Christ 
tau<^ht, yet the fact that He chose it as the scen.e of His 
opening ministry (Luke 23 : 5,) will give a sense of sa- 
ercdness and pathos to its waters till time shall end. — Ih. 

"Nowhere else will you see such magnificent oleanders 
as at the head of this lake. I saw clumps of them here 
twenty feet high, and a hundred feet in circumference, one 
mass of rosy-red flowers, a blushing pyramid of exquisite 

loveliness What can be more interesting ? A quiet 

ramble along the head of this sacred sea ! The blessed 
feet of Immanuel have hollowed every acre, and the eye of 
divine love has gazed a thousand times upon this fair ex- 
panse of lake and land. 0\i, it is surpassingly beautiful at 
this evening hour. Those western hills stretch out their 
lengthening shadows over it, as loving mothers drop the 
gauzy curtains round the cradle of their sleeping babes. 
Cold must be the heart that here throbs not with unwont- 
ed emotion."— TViompson. 





Galilee, the honored Sea, 

For bj thy side the Christ abode, 
And whom the unbelieving said " 'Tis He !"' 
Once on thy rolling billoAvs trod. 
O Galilee, sweet Sea, and blest, 
Whose waves obeyed Plis high behest, 
^ould all, like thee, might know His rest.* 

*-Matthew 11: 28. 




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Its (B"b;^ist ar|<i its S^ii^se. 



O Galilee, fair Galilee, 
Thou beauteous, mountain-inlaid sea, (i) 
Smiling beneath the Orient sun ; 
(Thy waters and the Jordan's one ;) (2) 
Now placid as a sleeping child ; 
Now lashed into mountains wild. 
By fitful winds by which thou art crossed, 
Whose fury is as quickly lost : (3) 
Thou beautiful, but unseen sea. 
We come, we come, to sing of thee. 

O, oft-sung Galilean sea, 
A vision bright now comes to me. 
As once, when prophet saw unfold 
The pearly gates to streets of gold ; 
And all unconscious how or where, 
The scene so ravishingly fair, — 
So comes thy vision now, sweet lake. 
As dream recalled when we awake. 



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GALILKE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE 

Life-long have I coveted to stand 

Within the borders of thy land ; 

To tread thy shores, so sacred, sweet, 

Once trodden by the Master's feet ; 

And in thy waters my feet lave, 

Once trod by Him wh.o came to save : 

Denied this, I thiinkful share, 

In vision, answer to my prayer. 
Looking away o'er centuries 

A score lesf< one preceding tliis, 

I seem on shores made memorable 

By scenes which, in recital, still 

Within the Christian's heait awake 
A thrill of love for thee, bweet lake ;— 
Entrunc^d stand, delighted share 
A vision of thy waters fair,— 
Not as now seen, mid solitudes, (4) 
Forsaken, wliere scarce oar intrudes ; 
Tliy sliores untrod, thy cities waste. 
And e'en their ruins dimly traced,— 
But as when once thy wind-tossed waves 
lull many a thriving citv laves • (-) 
W hen o'er thy waters fishermen, 
With generous catches dailv ran ■ 






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GALILEE : ITS CHUIST AND ITS CUUSE. 

And many a boat from shore to sliore, 
In storm and calm, were passing o'er. (6) 

Northward, where Jordan takes its rise. 
Proud Hermon towers to tlie skiis ; 
Snow-capped, amid eternal green, 
By Moses e'en from Pisgah seen. (7) 

Southward, by where the Jordan flows, 
Asdraelon's plain round Tabor knows ; 
By isolation magnified, 
And seen in beauty far and wide. (S) 

Upon thy western shore I gain 
Vision of wide-extended Plain ; 
Pride of Gennessaret— and she 
Pride of the Gentile Galilee. 
In beauty and in fruitfulness, 
Unknown tlie land Mirpassing this : 
"Nature's ambition, "(9) where abound 
'I'lie fruits in varying clima'es found. 
'J'he stately palm, higii towering, 
To the fair Plain doth beauty bring ; 
Tiie oleander, graceful, fair. 
And giant-grown magnolia, 
With flora, richest Nature yields, 
Adorn its forests, gardens, fields ; 






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GALILKE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE 

While figs, and grapes, and olives bear 
Their varied fruitage through the year. 
Ere the gay city's life is stirred. 
The lark and turtle's voice is heard . 
And when the shades of night prevail, 
The lone and beauteous nightingale 
Pours forth, amid enchantment rare, 
Her liquid music on the air. 

And oft, with thought-inspiring mien. 

The towering, awkward stork is seen,— 

The people's veneration, sage, 

That ne'er forgets its parantage, 

That knows its time appointed well, 

And to the house-top comes to dwell, (g) 
Eastward, with fertile plain between. 

Is Gadara, on hill-top seen. 

With walls and towers fortified, 

That fiercest enemies defied. 

Proud capital of Perea, 

In land of Gad, seen far away : 

O'erlooking, whatsoe'er it means, 

"The country of the Gadarenes." (lo) 

Ah, what a panorama fair 
This vision to my eye doth bear, 




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GALILEE : ITS CHKIST AND ITS CUK&E. 



Of cities lofty, three times three, (ii) 
That grace thy shores, fair Galilee, 
All life appears as flowing song. 
Amid the gay and earnest throng, 
In cities' marts, and cities' streets, 
On sea and shore, that my eye greets ; 
And clothes my vision with delight. 
Scarce less than that of real yight. 

Entranced, now I seem to hold 
Tiberias, as in days of old — (,12) 
Proud seat of Galilean power 
Till second Agrippa's reigning hour. 
And bearing high imperial name. 
With much of ruling Caesar's fame, 
I seem to tread its streets and marts, 
To share in its Roman sports and arts, 
Its schools of learning, statues fair, 
Its monuments, both high and rare, 
Its palace proud, the "Golden Home'' (13 
Of Herod Antipas of Rome. 

And fairer vision seems to come, 
It is of Christ's home, Capernaum, (14) 
Beauty itself, mid beauty held, 
"In sisrht like unto an emarald." 





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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUIJSE. 

Beauteous indeed, "by way of tlie sea," 

P"airest of all in Galilee, — 

With synagogue, renowned one. 

Gift of a proud Centurion ; 

Rome's Custom-seat for gatherer, 

And marble palaces most fair: 

I hear, a-marching through its s reets, 

The tread of Roman cohorts' feet ; 

And gaze on piles where wealth is found, 

And pride and luxury abound 

And thou Chorazin, by tlie sea, (15) 
My vision, too, extends to thee : 
I walk thy streets, so full of pride. 
Where sin and ill seem deified ; 
Where mid the richest gifts of green. 
The darkest stains of bin are seen. 

.And, from Chorazin not afar. 
My vision covers Beths.aiua,— (16) 
Bethsaida fair of Galilee ; 
And Bethsaida Julius, o'er tlie sea. 
Enlarged by Philip, bearing name 
Of his own daugliter, of vile fame. 

These, with the rock-bound Gamala, (17) 
And home of Mary, Magdala, (18) 




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G\LILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CURSE. 11 . 

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And G ERG ASA beyond the sea> 
All in my vision come to me. 



Such is the beauty my vision brings, 
Such arc the shades it o'er thee flings, 
When He of whom the Prophets spake 
Appeared upon thy shores, fair lake, 
And to thy waters gave renown 
No other waters e'er have known, — 
Renown that shall as lasting be, 
As Orient sun that shines o'er thee. 



The Jewish writings had foretold 

A coming King, from times of old, — 

One who in peace and power should reign. 

And e'er his Kingdom should retain. 

All eyes were gazing wistfully 

The more than longed-for King to see, 

When Zebulon and Naphtali, 

That on thy western borders lie. 

Amid the darkness of their night. 

Behold arise a wondrous Light ! (19) 







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12 GALILKE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE. 

In wilderness of Bethabara, 
Beyond where Jordan's waters are, 
A voice is heard, in words foretold, 
Proclaiming there, in accents bold, 
"Prepare ye way, way for the Lord, 
"Make straight a highway for our God !" 
Himself declaring sent to bear 
Witness to one then standing there, 
The latchet e'en upon whose shoes 
He was not worthy to unloose — 
Forerunner, only, of that Light 
Foretold to shine upon their night,— 
Israel's long looked-for, promised King, 
Who should to them Redemption bring. 
His raiment was of camel's hair. 
Locusts and wild honey his plain fare ; 
And of so strange, yet noble mien, 
No wonder that in liim was seen 
Sonic likeness to him looked-for 
To reign the troubled nation o'er. 
But he denied, and loudly cried 
Of lair one standing by his side : 
"Behold the Lamb of God, who takes 
"Away your sins I" redemption makes! 





--*Ai^ 





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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUliSE 



And now the land of Galilee 
Is as when o'er its placid sea, 
The wild winds from the Little Ghor> 
Their wildness and their fury pour ! 

The voice of him who claimed to be 
Forerunner, heard beyond the sea, 
Awoke the envy, pride and power. 
Of Priests and Scribes the whole land o'er ; 
While multitudes from far away 
Flock to his preaching, day by day ; 
Sharing in his baptismal rite, 
And welcommg thus the coming Light. 
But thousand, thousand times the more. 
The land, from Dan to Beersheba, 
Rocked as its lake beneath a storm, 
When o'er it walked, in human form. 
One long foretold, with grace of mien. 
Such as the world had never seen : 
And spake, not as the Scribes, but with a power 
In all tho land ne'er heard before, — 
Whom e'en thy waves, O Sea obeyed, 
And at His word affrighted fled, 
And Galilee slept sweet and calm 
As He amid that ras:ins: storm. 




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GALILKE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE. 

Fearless, the Forerunner cries, "Repent," 
And does the work on which he's sent ; 
Proclaiming boldly through the land, 
"The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand I" 
Reproving sin, whate'er he sees. 
Not fearing Scribes or Pharisees. 

In proud Tiberias, by the sea, 
Ruling in more than cruelty, 
Herod, the vile Antipas, abode, 
In all the pride of Roman mode ; 
Indulging e'en incestuous life. 
With his own brother Philip's wife. 
John, witli a boldness all his own, 
Hurled anathemas at the throne, 
Fearlessly charging "the powers that be" 
With incest and adultery. 
A fearful charge thus to proclaim. 
And e'en the King himself to name. 

When Jesus in the wilderness 
From Satan found a sweet release, 
Seeking his home, so long denied, 
He calleth five with him to abide. 
In little Cana, where he rests, 
A wedding was, and they were guests. 




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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CURSE. 

'Twas here he made of water wine, 
With power none could then define, — 
For filUng pots with water pure, 
He bade therefrom new wine to draw, 
And bear to the ruler of the feast — 
Who straightway pronounced it "best.'' 

When to the Passover they had gone. 
And homeward essayed to return. 
He needs must through Samaria pass. 
Fatigued in walking, sitting thus 
By Jacob's well, a woman there 
With pitcher came. He bade her draw, 
And with her talked till return of his own, 
Who to the city for food had gone : — 
Surprising all, he being a Jew, 
A thing that Sychar never knew, — 
Avowing himself a fountain rife 
With water of eternal life ! 
And work of wondrous power wrought 
Through her who the living water sought. 

And passing on from Samaria, 
To Cana he pursued his way ; 
And while with friends he tarried there, 
Centurion cam^, with earnest prayer. 





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GALILKE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSI 




That he to Capernaum would come, 

And heal the sick sen in his home. 

Although the appeal touched Jesus' heart, 

His prayer was answered but in part, 

For quickly he was heard to say ; 

"Thy son liveth— go thy way." 

The gladdened father, hastening home, 

Meets flying messengers that come, 

Declaring that his son is well ; — 

And when the very hour they tell. 

He knew it was the very hour 

At which he sought Christ's healing power. 

Sent of God unto his own, 
Rejected in the love thus shown, — 
Accounted of but little worth 
Within the land that gave him birth, — 
Leaving Nazareth, (the family home,) 
From whence 'twas said "no good could come," 
He and his own, all quietly, 
Make their abode in Galilee, — 
And, fearing Herod, seek a home 
In city of Capernaum. 
From whence his fame went quickly out 
Through all the country round about. 



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GALILEK : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUK&E 



'Tis Sabbath morn. The busy hum 

Has ceased in Capernaum. 

No boat is loosed, not e'en an oar 

Is raised or dipped on either shore, — 

Nor ox or ass is seen abroad, — 

For 'tis the Sabbath of tlie Lord. 

But what a surging crowd I see, 

Fair synagogue, flocking to thee! 

What meaneth it? Why this— He who 

Spake with a power man never knew, 

Was there to hear and read the law. 

As was his wont in home before. 

Now, in my vision, 1 behold 

There man with unclean spirit bold, 

Amid the astonished multitude, 
With friglitful crying to intrude : 

"Let us alone ! for what have we, 

"Jesus of Nazareth, to do with thee? 

"Hast thou come to destroy us ? No ! 

"Thou art God's Holy One we know !" 

At Christ's command, "Be still ! come forth !" 

The unclean spirit ceased its wrath, 

And left the man it had possessed, 

•Though rent and torn, and sadly pressed. 






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GALILEK : ITS CHUIST AND ITS CUKSK. 



Amazement seized upon all there, — 
"What thing is this ? what doctrine rare ? 
"For he commands spirits unclean, 
"And in obedience they are seen I" 

.Departing thence, I see them ccme 
And enter Simon Peters home. 
Where the kindly mother of his wife 
Has fever, burning out her life, — 
And they beseech his aid for her. 
He touched her hand — wrought wondrous cure 
And rising from that burning bed, 
In health she to them minist'red. 
Confirming words of Jewish lore, 
Pronounced seven hundred years before : 
"He our infirmities did share, 
"Our sicknesses himself did bear,'' 

And, now, sweet rest the Saviour shares, 
For none e'en for the sick one cares 
On Sabbath, lest it be profaned. 
And Law by true love should be stained ! 
Nay, to do good on the Sabbath day 
Was sinful till Christ passed that way ! 

But what a scene was round that shore, 
When the Sabbath's sun had passed o'er? 




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GALILEE : ITS CHEIST AND ITS CURSE. 19 



As now the calm waters of the lake 
Of lingering sunset's glow partake, 
And lengthening shadows disappear, 
Ah, what a motley crowd is here, 
In all the hediousness of sin, 
Disease and sickness, gathered in ! 
No lazar-house the whole world o'er 
Had seen such sickening sight before, 
As that in our vision now we see 
Upon thy shore, fair Galilee ! 
The fevered patient, — bed rid one, — 
He who with frenzied cry doth run,— 
The lame, the halt, the deaf, the blind, — 
Those whom unclean spirits bind, — 
The palsied, and the leper, e'en. 
Around the healing Christ are'seen, — 
Come or are brought this evening fair, 
Christ's wondrous healing power to share. 
For them his heart of pity glows, 
For them in healing power goes ; 
Yea, as in tender love he views 
Snch siickening, touching scene of woes 
As ne'er the world had seen before, 
"He all their griefs and sorrows bore 1'' 





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galilep: : its Christ, and its curse 



Again, in my vision, I behold 
A scene a thousand times retold. 
Jesus, while teaching by the sea-side, 
By such a pressing crowd is tried, 
lie enters a ship, from thence to teach 
The, thousands gathered on the beach. — 
Who list to words of wondrous lore 
In parable, as ne'er before. 
From things familiar, all well knew, 
Christ his new Kingdom brings to view : 
By sower who went forth to sow, — 
And how his differing strewings grow, 
By seed the fowls of air soon found. 
By seed that fell on stony ground. 
By seed thorn choked, and seed that fell 
On good ground and produced well, — 
By leaven, which the lump doth know 
And mustard-seed, how it should grow, — 
By candle upon its stick is shown 
All should be open, naught unknown, — 
That unto him that hath would be 
More given generously, 
While he who shared with him not 
E'en less should be his meagre lot I 
Thus till long shadows the lake kiss 
He sweetly speaks in form like this. 




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GALILEK : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUK&E. 




From the enthused, living tide, 
He gives lommand for the other side. 
Now, as they sail, he falls asleep, 
And o'er the waters, dark and deep, 
A mighty wind from off the ghor 
Jts fury and its wrath doth pour. 
Upon the fearful waves set loose, 
(For oars and anchors are no use,) 
Now tossed by waves that kiss the sky, 
Now in the sea's deep trough they lie, — 
Their ship with water e'en nigh full, 
Affright and terror all hearts rule, — 
Hope and their craft about to sink. 
Of him asleep they hopeful think, 
And with this cry the sleeper wake : 
"Master, we're sinking in the lake ! 
That thus we perish carest thou not ?'' 
As if he e'en had them forgot. 
He, rising from his resting place, 
Calmly, with majestic grace, 
Says, "Peace ! be still !" .-Vnd the fair lake 
Knows sleep as sweet as him they wake. 
Turning, he to the affrighted said : 
"Where, why, thy faith so quickly fled ?'' 



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22 GALILEE : ITS CHKIST AND ITS CUKSK 

Now, as they land upon the sliore 
At foot ot steep, high Gergasa, 
There meets them, coming from the tombs, 
One who through the mountain roams. 
By unclean spirit long po<;sessecl — 
Loud-crying, wounded, without rest, — 
Whom chain nor fetter e'er could bind. 
Nor e'er by man could be confined. 
He, seeing Jesus from afar. 
Approaches, bowing to him there ; 
Loudly crying, "What have 1 
•'To do with thee, Son of the Most High ? 
"By the Most High God. I thee adjure, 
"Torment me not by thy strange cure!'' 
For Christ had said, Thou unclean one, 
"Come out of him ! let him alone !" 
Now there was a herd of swine that fed 
Upon the lofty mountain's head. 
The devils asking, Christ gave sign 
To enter and possess the swme. 
They enter — and the herd in fright — 
Two thousand — a most fearful sight — 
Down the steep mount in madness rave, 
And find below a watery grave ! 



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GALILEE : ITS CHllIST AND ITS CUK&E 



And they that keep them haste to tell 
In the nigh city, wh.at befell 
The herd of swine — and of the cure 
Of him possessed, so feared before. 
Strangest of all is Gergasa's prayer, 
That Jesus would not tarry there ! 
Like desert heath ; discerning not 
The good that falleth to their lot ; 
Like fools, to more than folly born, 
Who ever highest wisdom scorn. 

Now, in my vision, 1 behold 
A scene too bloody to be told : 
Amid the festivities in place 
Where Herod's friends his birth-day grace, 
In halls where pomp and beauty are, 
Salome, Herodias' daughter fair. 
Denying all of modest mien, 
Bedecked, in vilest dance is seen. 
So pleased the King, he promises 
With oath, to give whate'er she says. 
Taught by incestuous mother, she, 
In colder blood, asks it may be 
The head of John the Baptist, who 
Had boldly brought their sins to view. 




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CALILKE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE 

Now quails with fear vile Antipas 
At what his sport iias brought to pass : 
Yet, for the oath with which 'twas said, 
He gives her John the Baptist's head ! 
And she the bloody gift doth bring 
To vile Herodias, from the King I 
A deed that cursed vile Antipas, 
That cursed the vile Herodias, 
That cursed the one who asked tluis. 
And more than cursed Tiberias. 
Martyr's blood tiie block may stain, 
But Truth can ne'er be bound or slain ! 

Such, such tlie Baptist's tragic end. 
That with thy story e'er must blend ; 
Thanks, Galilee, it is so rife 
With fragrance of the Saviour's life ! 

While passing Galilean Nain, 
A scene occurs that gives Clirist pain, 
Yea, sight that even dims his eye, 
As standing, he sees passing by, 
Prepared for burial, hither borne, 
Dependent widow's only son. 
Like him, much moved at her sad fate, 
A multitude passed out the gate. 



— xJO^-, 






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GALILEK : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE:. 25 



Moved by the wonders Christ had wrought, 
Vast multitudes Capernaum sought, 
From out ol Jerusalem, Idumea, 
Tyre and Sidon, far and near. 
All day his healing power he shows, 
At night-fall into the mountain goes, 
Calls to him whomsoe'er he would. 
And there throughout the night abode. 
When morning dawned, the twelve he chose,— 
Again the vast asse^iiblage knows, — 
And seeking rocky pulpit near, 
Where neath him standing all could hear, 
He spake, in words divinely sweet, 
Of life that would for Heaven make meet ; 
Beatitudes, divinely fair, 
That breathe of Heaven's purer air ; 
Of true forgiveness, only way ; 
And praying, how we ouj'ht to pray ; — 
With wondrous closing parable 
Of him who builds foolishly, and well. 

Ah, what a rich, perennial fount. 
I'liat wondrous Sermon on the Mount ! 
From that pure "opened mouth'' went forth 
Words of true righteousness and worth. 






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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE. 




Excelling all the lore profound 

In lore of Jew or Gentile found ; 

Lore that shall ever stand confessed 

True Heavenly lore — in blessing blessed, — 

As far above all, in its love, 

As Heaven is the world above. 

And while in sweetness it shall flow, 

The world admiringly shall go 

To thy sweet waters, Galilee, 

In vision-thought refreshed as we. 

Returning homeward, he is stayed 
By a leper, who thus earnest prayed : 
"Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.' 
"Christ says, "I will !" All pure he's seen. 

Scarcely had he reached his home. 
When Jewish elders to him come, 
And for his aid make strong appeal 
That he would go, and sick one heal, — 
Servant of a wealthy, worthy one, 
Famed and beloved Centurion, 
Who loved their nation, and had reared 
For them a synagogue, revered. 
His answer was, '1!11 with you go, 
"And tor the sick one healing show.'' 
But as he goes he hears the prayer 




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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CURSE. 27 

That he his coming would forbear, 
For all unworthy, sure, was he 
Whose guest he thus essayed to be ; 
'•But only speak the word,'' he said. 
"And my sick servant will be cured.'' 
(Such faith in all Israel was unknown 
As that of this loved Centurion.) 
And when the messengers returned 
The wondrous healing was confirmed. 

When Jesus heard John was no more 
He departed for the other shore, 
Followed by a vast multitude, 
Who on his privacy intrude. 
By pity moved, he healing wrought, — 
And, when by his own friends besought 
To feed the multitude, he lists their wishes, 
Taketh five loaves and two small fishes, 
And with face upturned to Heaven, 
Asking God's blessing to be given. 
Feeds that great multitude of men, 
Five thousand, together on the green — 
Their women, children entertained— (20) 
And still twelve baskets-full remained. 

The later night saw stranger scene 
Than that strange feast upon the green. — 





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(JALILEK : ITS CHUIST AND ITS CUltSK 

Saw stranger scene on Galilee 
Than e'er was seen on otiier sea ; 
Stranger than aught upon thy shore 
Since (jod's elect passed Jordan o'er 
With unwet teet — its waves back-driven, 
Obedient, at command of H eaven ! 

Now, as the night had well-nigh come, 
He bids liis friends to hasten home. 
Sends the vast multitude away, 
And up the mount goes forth to pray. 
When the long day far west had flown, 
The mountain saw him there alone, — 
And he, far off upon the sea, 
Saw the ship tossing fearfully, 
Sailors affrighted, struggling for life. 
And looking for death amid the strife. 

In fourth watch of. that fearful night, 
(Had mortal e'er seen such a sight ?) 
Jesus came walking on the sea. 
Affrighting his friends most fearfully ! 
But, when they heard him sweetly cry, 
"Be of good cheer, for it is 1, 
'Be not afraid ?'' Bold Peter said, 
"If it be thee, Lord, thy servant bid 






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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE. 




"Upon the waters come to thee," — 

All tearless of that raging sen. 

And he said, "Come." Then he essayed 

The stormy Galilee to tread. 

Upon his wild walk's very brink, 

Affrighted, he begins to sink ! 

The hand of him who walks the waves 

The pleading, sinking Peter saves, 

While to the timid one he said, 

"Why hast thy faith so quickly fled ?" 

O Galilee, sweet Galilee, 
Ever shall this be told of thee, 
That coming from that praying height, 
Christ walked thy waves that stormy night ! 
Ah, when upon life's stormy sea 
We fearful toss, we'll think of thee ; 
And with faith's all-discerning sight, 
(Though in the fourth watch of our night,) 
See Jesus walking on our sea, 
As seen by them when walking thee. 
.A.nd mid the waves, though mountain-high. 
List the clear voice, and catch the cry 
Of Him wlio to them sweetly said, 
"Be of sood cheer ! be not afraid !" 






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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE. 

And bid our fears all quickly fly, 
At the sweet word, "It is I !" 

Again as he walks along tiie shore, 
He's asked a palsied man to cure. 
He healed him— saying to him, even, 
"Son, thy sins are all forgiven !" 
Then certain scribes, who envied him, 
Cried, "Surely this man doth blaspheme !" 
But Jesus asked them, "Which the more, 
"Sin to forgive, or, health restore ?!" 
And that he both had power to do, 
He said to him all palsied through, 
"Take up thy bed and bear it home, 
"From whence upon it thou didst come." 
Obeying, those who on him gaze, 
Marvel, and give to God the praise, 
Who had such wondrous power bestowed 
On one who in the flesh abode. 

But sweetest of these visions rare, 
Is Christ upon the mount in prayer. 
Whither, with Peter, James and John, 
Seeking seclusion, he had gone. 
And, as he prayed, his face was changed ; 
His raiment, gorgeously estranged, 



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P GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CURSE. 

^ For it was white and glittering, 

Exceeding that of earthly King. 
And lo ! two men with him appear, 
Who of his brightness, glory, share. 
And speak with him of his decease. 
And of Jerusalem, its place. 
As Peter saw the shining three. 
He hastily said, " 'Tis good to be 
"Here, Master, and let us make 
"Three tabernacles — one for thy sake, 
One for Moses — for Elias one," — 
Not even knowing what he 'd done. 
Now, as he spake, a shadowing cloud 
The mountain-Bethel doth enshroud ; 
And, mid their fear, a sweet voice clear 
From out the enfolding cloud they hear. 
Proclaiming of this shining One, 
•'This, this is my Beloved Son ! 
"Hear Him!" And when the cloud was gone 
Jesus stood there, unchanged, alone. 
Long-time these favored three forbear 
To tell of this "sweet hour of prayer.'' 
'I'hanks that in our vision we partake 
I Of that sweet scene by thee, sweet lake. 







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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AKD ITS CUKSE 

But one scene more. Jesus had died, 
Between two thieves been crucified,— 
Buried in Arimathea's tomb,— 
Upon third day had left its gloom,— 
Appeared to Mary Magdalene, — 
By other disciples had been seen, — 
W ith two conversed by the way 
Going to Emmaus — and asked to stay, 
Tarried with them in breaking of bread 
And blessing it, had vanished 

Upon the fair lake's western shore, 
As morning dawned its waters o'er, 
A company of fishermen. 
Who all night long had toiling been 
And nothing taken, unknowing, saw 
Jesus standing on the shore. 
He asks — "Children, have ye any meat ?" 
They answer, "No." He bids them set 
Their oft-drawn, fishless, fruitless seine 
Upon their right side. And then therein 
Is found enclosed, when it is drawn, 
A draught they never knew at morn. 
And when to Peter John declared, 
"It is none other than the Lord !" 



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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CURSE 

That fitful one himself did cast 
Into the sea, to greet Him first ; 
While in their little ship the rest 
Make shore, and, at their Lord's request, 
Bring of the fishes — with Him dine — 
Know now the presence, all divine, 
Of Risen Lord — their Love and pride — 
The self-same Jesus crucified ! 

O Galilee, fair Galilee, 
Thou beauteous, mountain-inlaid sea, 
Pride of Zebulon, Naphtali, Gad, 
Making all their hillsides glad 
Hy the sweetness to them given. 
Honored waters, "choice of Heaven," (21) 
Half thy beauty, half thy grace. 
Still remains for us to trace ; 
Half the Christ-life on thy shore 
We must pass in silence o'er, 
O, that thy people had but known 
The "Sent of God" — the favor shown — 
Christ had chosen, not the curse 
That must now employ our verse ! 



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34 galilep: : its chkist and its cuhsk 




Vanished the Christ-vision — while to me 
Comes vision of Christless (.ialilee! 

Again, as erst, 1 seem to stand 
Within the borders of the land,— 
Walk the self-same pebbly shore, — 
See sfU-same Orient sun pass o'er, — 
See self-same waters sweetly kiss 
The shore of plain and wilderness, — 
See the same Jordan through the lake 
Its Southernward course as swiftly make, — 
See storm of wrath on Galilee 
As quickly come, as quickly flee, — 
See Hermon towering as high, 
And Tabor towering as nigh, — 
And self-same nightly stars o'erhead. 
When nineteen centuries have fled. 
AH else, all else, how changed ! how changed ! 
From former vision how estranged.— 
Vision so fair, of sea and shore. 
Of nineteen centuries before ! 
I walk thy western strand, O sea, 
But, O, how changed is all but thee ! 
Where now thy busy life, O shore ? 
And voice replies — "No more ! no more !'' 
Where now thy craft, so many score, 




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GALILEK : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUK&E. 85 



Of merchants, fishers, floating o'er? 

And voice replies — '"No more ! no more !'' 

I ask for fair Capernaum, 
Christ's own city — chosen home — 
The beauteous city, all aa;low 
With wealtli and splendor it did know ; 
Its marble mansions, statues fair, 
With which proud Rome could scarce compare. 
I cry aloud — Capernaum ? Capernaum? 
And hear reply— "Tell Hum ! Tell Hum I" 
That vile and Heaven-abandoned Tell, 
Fit transcript of its promised "hell." 

1 seek for proud Tiberias, 
Reared by the cruel Antipas ; 
Seat of Rome's Imperial power. 
With -'Golden Home," and shafts that tower. 
And wall and forts of Roman pride, 
.And monarch who e'en Heaven defied 
Where the Christ-feet, perhaps, ne'er came, 
So Heaven-daring was its fame ! 
1 cry aloud, — Tiberias, where ? 
And answer comes, "Tell Taberaeh," — 
That, like Tell Hum, has naught to show 
But dirt, and sin, and want, and woe ! 






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GALILEE : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSK 




Chorazin 1 call, and Bethsaida, 
Gergasa, Gadara, Magdala, 
And voice comes clear, from eitlier shore, 
"Forever gone — no more ! no more !" 

O smitten, desolated land, 
Monument of God's wrath ye stand ; 
Recalling Christ's denouncing word, 
That only lingered when 'twas heard : 
"Woe unto tliee, Chorazin fair I 
"Woe unto thee, Bethsaida! 
"For if the works in thee I've done, 
"Had been in Tyre and Sidon, 
"Their bitter grief would long been read, 
"In ashes strewn upon the head ! 
"And thou Capernaum, exalted higii 
"Jn privilege, as to the sky, 
"To hell from thence thou shalt be brought ! 
"For if in Sodom had been wrought 
"The mighty works shown unto thee, 
"She here would still remaining be ! 

Desolation, as a heavy cloud, 
Doth thy once fair land enshroud I 
When, O when, fair Galilee, 
Shall the healing Christ return to thee? 




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GALILEK : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUKSE 




Standing now by thee, fair lake, 
Our vision shares what shall o'ertake, 
E'er, those who dare Almighty Power, 
And scorn, neglect its chosen hour ; 
Who Messianic peans sing, 
But will not own Christ as their King. 

O Galilee, fair Galilee, 
Thou beauteous, mountain-inlaid sea, 
Not till the Orient sun shall set 
Eternally, shall man forget 
That once thy stormy waves were trod 
By feet of Jesus — Son of God ! 
That thy wild billows once obeyed 
The Lord's command — their madness stayed! 
Nor aught forget said, done by thee, 
In wondrous love, sweet Galilee ! 



NOTES. 

1. The waters of the lake lie in a deep basin, surround- 
ed on all sides with lofty hills, excepting only the narrow 
entrance and outlet of the Jordan at eacli extremity. 

2. A strong current marks the passage of the Jordan 
through the middle of the lake, in its way to the Dead Sea, 
where it empties itself. 

3. The local features of the lake render it occasionally 
subject to whirlwinds, squalls, and sudden gusts from the 

hollow of the mountains, which, as in any other similar 



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38 GAJ.ILEK : ITS CH11I6T AND ITS CUHSK 





basin. ar.« of short duration ; and the most furious gust is 
succeeded by a perfect CA\m.— Porter. 

4. During tlie lite of our Lord, tiie sliores of the lake 
were the most densely populated and the most flourishing 
part of Palestine; now, the most deserted. — Srhajf. 

5. In Christ's time these shores were studded with 
great cities aud resounded with the din of an active and 
industrious people Nine cities stood on the very borders 
of the lake, and numerous large villages dotted the plains 
and hillsides around. Seven <jf the nine cities are now un- 
inhabited ruins : one, Magdala, is occupied by a half doz- 
en nnid hovels, and Tiberias alone retains a wretched rem- 
nant of its former prosperity — Porter. 

6 In Christ's time the lake of Gennesaret was covered 
with ships passing from shore to shore ; now there are but 
about three rough fishing boats to be seen — Schaff. 

7. Mount Hermon is called by the Arabs the "Chief 
Mountain." It rises at the northern extremity of Galilee 
to a height of 10,000 feet above the Mediterranean, and 
presents three lofty peaks. It is covered with eternal 
snow. It can be seen from every direction, and Moses 
saw it from the top of Pisgah, in Moab, when the Lord 
shewed him all the land of Gilead unto Dan. — Deut. 34 : i. 

8. Mount Tabor lies right in the centre of the Holy 
Land, about six or eight miles east of Nazareth. It rises 
isolated and alone in its glory, from the Plain of Esdrae- 
lon, to a height of 1400 from its base, or 1900 from tlie 
level of the sea. Owing 10 its isolation it appears twice 
as large as it really is. — Schaff. 

9. Land of Genneseret — "Paradise of the Prince." — 
It is now called El Ghuweir, the Little Ghor, or Plain. 
It was once a rit-h garden that supplied Jerusalem with 
fruits. (Deut. 8 : 7, 8, 9.") Josephus says : "Snch is the 
fertility of the soil that it rejects no plant, and so genial is 



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GALILEK : ITS CHRIST AND ITS CUHSH 





the climate that it suits every variety. One might style 
this an ambitious effort of nature, doing violence to her- 
self in bringing together plants of different habits " 

Jeremiah 8 : 2. The stork is said never to forsake its 
parents, but to feed and defend them in tli£ir decrepitude. 
They are still the objects of much veneration among the 
common people in many parts of Europe. 

10. Much of uncertainty exists among biblical students 
as to the meaning and limit of the term "Country of the 
Gadarenes.'' 

11. These nine were Bethsaida, Capernaum, Chorazin, 
Dalmanutha, Gergasa, Gadara, Gamala, Magdala, Tiberias. 

12. Tiberias, now ca'led Tell Taberaeh, built by Herod 
.Antipas, in A. D 20, in honor of Tiberius, was a famous 
seat of rabbinical learning. He endowed it with great ad- 
vantages and much splendor, making it the metropolis of 
Galilee. The town is situated close to the edge of the lake, 
and was walled. It is now a miserable, dirty place, inhab- 
ited by Jews and Moslems, subject to earthquakes, by one 
of which (in 1837,) half the population perished and the 
walls were thrown down. Dr. Schaff says— "It seemed to 
me to be the very head-quarters of Beelzebub.'- 

13. "The Golden Hnr.sj" was the name of the palace 
of Herod, and hither, probably, the head of John the Bap- 
tist was brought in a charger and presented to Salome. 

14. Capernaum, the Hill of Nahum. Its supposed site 
is at Tell Hum, the name and ruins favoring the supposi- 
tion. It is on elevated ground, about half a mile west of 
the lake. There is not even a horse-path leading to it. — 
The ruins as described by Dr. Robinson, and Cai)t. VVil- 
son (in 1866,) are the most remarkable in that whole re- 
t^ion, and betray the .presence of a large town. They con- 
sist of foundations and walls of houses, and of broken col- 







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40 GALILKE : ITS CHUIST AND ITS CUIJSK 



umns, Corintliian capitals, friezes of a synag. gue, built of 
white limestone. On a large block is a pot of manna, en- 
"raved, in commemoration of the manna in the wilderness. 
There is a probability that this was the synagogue the good 
Centurion built, and where Christ taught the people. 

15 Chorazin is among the lost cities. Jerome speaks of 
it as "on the shore of the lake, two miles from Caperna- 
um." A place of this name is mentioned in the Talmud 
as famous for its wheat fields Dr. Thompson locates it 
at Chorazy. The excavations of ^ essrs. Wilson and An 
derson, at that point, reveal "many of the private houses 
as almost perfect except the roof, all the buildings being 
of basalt, including a synagogue." 

16. liethsaida, (Fish-town,) was the native place of 
Andrew, Peter, Philip, James and John. It is usually dis- 
tinguished as Betlisaida of Galilee from Hethsaida Julius. 
A more probable theory is that the two I'ethsaidas were 
parts of one and the same city, on both banks of the Jor- 
dan, near its entrance to the lake. 

17. Gamala, the hi.mp ot the camel, an isolated prom- 
ontory on the east of the lake, takes its name from its pe- 
culiar formation. Next to Jerusalem, Gamala furnishes 
the most remarkable fulfillment on rt cord of those terrible 
predictions of our Saviour concerning the destruction of 
the Jews. Most interesting details of its former prowess 
may be found in Thompson's "Ljind and Book.'" 

28. Magdala, now Mejdel, is a wretched hamlet of a 
dozen mud hovels on the southern margin of the lake — the 
home of Mary Magdalene, who had seven devils — about 
the average possession of its present people. 

19. Isaiah 9 ; i. 2 ; Matt. 4 ; 14-17. 

20, Thejewish women never sat with the men to eat. 

21 The Talmudists had a proverb that "God had cre- 
ated seven seas in the land of Canaan, but that only one — 
the Sea of Galilee — had He chosen for Himself.'' 




9 ;^^^^- 





TIIE SEA OF GALILEE. 

R. M. m'CHEYNE. 

"How pleasant to me thy deep blue wave, 

O sea of Galilee ! 
For the glorious One who came to save 

Hath often stood by thee . 

Fair are the lakes in the land I love, 
Where pine and heather grow ; 

But thou hast loveliness above 
What nature can bestow. 

It is not that the wild gazelle 
Comes down to drink thy tide, 

Rut He that was pierced to save from hell 
Oft wandered by thy side. 

It is not that the fig tree grows. 

And palm, in thy soft air ; 
But that Sharon's fair and bleeding rose 

Once spread its fragrance there. 

Ciracefui round thee the mountains meet, 

Thou calm, reposing sea ; 
But ah ! far more, the beautiful feet 

Of Jesus walked o'er thee. 

Those days are past — Bethsaida where? 

Chorasin, where art thou ? 
His tent the wild Arab pitches there. 

The wild weeds shade thy brow. 




-^Lfti^^ 




i 




;'Ojin-- 



Tell me, ye moulderini^ fraQjments, tell, 

\\ as the Saviour's city liere ? 
Lifted to heaven, has it sank to hell, 

With none to shed a tear ? 

Ah ! would my flock from thee might learn 

How days of grace may flee ; 
How all an offered Christ who spurn 

Shall mourn, at last, like thee. 

And was it beside this very sea 

The new risen Saviour said 
Three times to Simon, ''Lovest thou me?" 

"My lambs and sheep then feed,'' 

O Saviour ! gone to God's right hand, 

Yet the same Saviour still, 
Graved on Thy heart is this lovely strand. 

And every fragrant hill. 

O give me, Lord, by this sacred wave, 

Threefold Thy love divine, 
That 1 may feed, till 1 find my grace, 

Thy flock, — both Thine and mine." 





"But wherefore this dream of the earthly abode 
Of Humanity clothed in the brightness of God ? 
Were my spirit but turned from the outward and dim, 
It would gaze, even now, on the presence of Him ! 

Oh, the outward hath gone ! but in glory and power 
The spirit surviveth the things of an hour ; 
Unchanged, undecaying, its Pentecost flame 
On the heart's secret altar is burning the same I" 

WHITTIER. 



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